Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Lu Yan immediately noticed something was off in Lu Miao's tone. He straightened up and asked, "What?"

"Nothing," Lu Miao hesitated for a moment, "My plans have changed. I'll be back in a few days."

Lu Yan knew his mother's personality inside out. Though she had always been independent, sticking to a routine between the company, the restaurant, and home, she wasn’t reclusive or withdrawn. She always tackled challenges with a strong and optimistic attitude, so it was unusual to see her so down.

Lu Yan tightened his grip on the phone, his voice steady and firm.

"Zhou Ming contacted you."

Gu Xu raised an eyebrow and let up on the gas a bit.

There was a long silence on the other end, followed by a barely audible sigh.

"He asked me to talk some sense into you. Tomorrow is..." Lu Miao trailed off.

Lu Miao was decisive and never left herself an out, but when it came to this relationship, she couldn’t let go more than anyone else.

Her decision to marry that poor boy, despite all the warnings, came from a place of deep love. Even after the divorce, she never badmouthed her ex-husband in front of her son. Instead, she often acted as a peacemaker between them, just like now.

Lu Yan let out a bitter laugh, "Mom, you don’t need to worry about this."

Lu Miao seemed to catch the edge in his voice and quickly backtracked, "Forget it, Xiao Yan, pretend I didn’t bring it up. Let’s just focus on our own lives."

Lu Yan gave a calm "Hmm," and said, "Don’t worry."

Hearing his calm tone, Lu Miao relaxed and asked a few more caring questions before hanging up.

As soon as the call ended, Lu Yan called Lin An.

"What’s going on? I’m about to board."

Lu Yan checked the time and said casually, "Cancel the flight for the day after tomorrow. Get me on the eleven o’clock one."

"Huh?" Lin An was taken aback, "Eleven? Today’s eleven??"

"Any flight tonight works. I’ll be at the airport around ten. Figure it out."

"Wait, I’m about to board. How am I supposed to book a ticket for you last minute? And aren’t you filming tomorrow?"

"Make it happen. I’ll handle the director."

"Fine, fine, you’re impossible! Hang up, I’ll see what I can do."

Gu Xu, who rarely took his eyes off the road, glanced at him.

Lu Yan’s face was shadowed, his lips a thin line. His earlier slouched posture had turned stiff.

Though his tone was calm, Gu Xu could tell he was seething.

Lin An called back right away, hesitating, "Xiao Yan, there’s nothing available for tonight. The earliest is tomorrow at seven."

Lu Yan rubbed his temples, "Then book the seven o’clock one."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gu Xu suddenly slowed down and pulled the car into the emergency lane.

Under Lu Yan's questioning gaze, he made a phone call.

"Get us two tickets back to City B for tonight."

"Lu Yan and me."

"Make it first class."

The call ended after just three sentences. After putting his phone away, he merged back onto the highway: "Our flight's at eleven. Should we pack and head straight to the airport?"

Lu Yan was momentarily stunned, snapping back to reality at Lin An's "hello?" He quickly said, "Don't bother," and hung up.

Silence returned to the car. Gu Xu, receiving no response, repeated his question.

Lu Yan: "...Okay, are you heading back too?"

"Yeah, I'm done here."

*

Only when they were seated in the VIP lounge did Lu Yan fully regain his composure.

Xu Fei had pulled strings to get two tickets, so they were returning alone this time.

Next to him, Gu Xu lounged comfortably, absorbed in his tablet, white earphones dangling from his ears. The sharp contrast between the white earphones and his black suit struck Lu Yan as strangely... cute?

He couldn't resist glancing at the screen.

He'd thought the man was reviewing some investment proposal or something, but to his surprise, the tablet was streaming a TV drama, with the progress bar already halfway. It seemed Gu Xu had been watching it earlier and had picked up where he left off.

Suddenly, Lu Yan wondered what kind of drama Gu Xu was into.

After a few more looks.

"Why are you watching this show!?"

The guy on screen, decked out in beachwear, flip-flops, and half a bottle of hair gel—wasn't that him!!!

Lu Yan didn't start out as a lead actor. His first role was as the second male lead, which was a decent start, but it was just the initial carrot Star Entertainment dangled in front of him. His subsequent roles were of lower prominence. It wasn't until over two years later that he landed a leading role.

What Gu Xu was watching was his very first TV drama.

In this drama, he played a flamboyant, arrogant, and unreasonable tycoon.

—Not a second male lead, but a foil to the perfect male protagonist.

So his look in the drama was as tacky, awkward, and exaggerated as it could get.

The corner of Gu Xu's mouth curved up: "A friend recommended it."

So which friend was so cruel as to recommend a drama that flopped five years ago??

Seeing Lu Yan silent, Gu Xu suddenly looked up, smiling at him: "This guy looks a lot like you."

Lu Yan: ...

Since you don't recognize me, I won't step forward to make a fool of myself 🙂

Gu Xu's gaze returned to the tablet. Sitting close, Lu Yan caught the scent of his cologne again.

Strong but not overpowering.

Somehow, his gloomy mood inexplicably lifted a bit.

Lu Yan was about to play a match-three game to pass the time when he opened his phone and noticed a few messages.

Lin An: I've arrived. Do you want me to change your flight to tomorrow?

Lu Yan sent his location over.

Lin An: ???

Lin An: You're at the airport?? I couldn't get a ticket!!

Lu Yan: Gu Xu helped me book one.

Lin An: No way, how did he pull that off? The seats were all full.

Lin An: Never mind, as long as you got it. By the way, why are you in such a hurry to come back?

Lu Yan: There's something I need to handle.

Lin An: Alright, remember to contact me if there's any problem.

The two were close friends, but when it came to family matters, Lu Yan hadn't shared much with Lin An, only vaguely mentioning that he came from a single-parent family. Knowing Lu Yan didn't want to go into detail, Lin An didn't push.

Just as Lu Yan was about to close the conversation, another message popped up.

Lin An: Why do you think Gu Xu is so good to you?

Lin An: Does he like you? Has he confessed to you?

Lu Yan was taken aback and instinctively glanced at the person next to him.

Gu Xu really did seem... quite nice to him.

He had driven him home.

Cooked porridge for him.

Even on business trips, he cooked for him, brought him soup, and visited him on set.

Just now, without asking why he suddenly needed to return, Gu Xu had immediately booked him a flight.

Does he like me?

Noticing the gaze, Gu Xu suddenly looked up and softly asked, "What's up?"

Lu Yan shook his head: "It's nothing."

Gu Xu checked the time and stood up: "Let's go, time to board."

He walked a few steps and noticed the person behind him wasn't following along. Turning back, he saw Lu Yan still sitting in the chair, looking at him with a slightly dazed expression.

Catching his gaze, Lu Yan quickly snapped out of it, pulled down his hat, and hurried after him: "Coming."

He followed behind Gu Xu, typing on his phone.

Lu Yan: Stop talking crap.

Lin An: Hey, let's keep it classy, okay!

Lin An: Besides, I'm not wrong. He really does treat you well.

Lu Yan was too lazy to reply and directly turned off his phone.

The flight duration was only a little over two hours. Since it was a late-night flight, the cabin lights were dimmed, making him feel drowsy.

Lu Yan had been filming all day and was already extremely tired on his way back to the set. Later, he was woken up by a phone call from Lu Miao, but now, on the return journey, sleepiness overwhelmed him again.

He put on an eye mask, ready to take a short nap.

Gu Xu's voice sounded beside him, speaking in a very low volume: "Bring a blanket."

Not long after, a blanket was gently draped over Lu Yan, carefully tucking in the corners.

After getting off the plane, a pre-arranged car drove them back to the apartment.

After saying goodbye to Gu Xu and returning home, Lu Yan turned on his phone, and Lin An's messages appeared again.

Lin An: Did you board the plane?

Lin An: Let me know when you arrive.

Above these two messages was the one that read, "He’s always been good to you."

Lu Yan typed a reply, "Arrived," before falling onto the bed.

All the sleepiness seemed to have been driven away by Lin An's message.

He tutted, removed the disposable mask, and was about to throw it away when the bright red invitation in the trash bin finally snapped him out of it.

He picked up the invitation, looked at it with disgust, then opened his phone's contact list, scrolling through for a while before finding the name he was looking for.

The person on the other end answered in surprise: "Bro Yan?"

-

Gu Xu was woken up by the phone call.

He sounded annoyed, and his frown was deep enough to kill a mosquito: "Looking for death?"

"Bro, stop sleeping, I’ve got something important to tell you!" Gu Xu had a heavy morning grumpiness, and Chen Yiming had thought about it for a while before making this call.

"Did your company go bankrupt?"

"Hey, would I dare bother you with something so trivial?" Chen Yiming joked before getting serious. "It’s about Lu Yan."

Gu Xu opened his eyes slightly: "Speak."

"My insider in the paparazzi heard they got a big scoop about Lu Yan," Chen Yiming paused, then revealed the news.

"They say Lu Yan is going to crash a wedding today!"

"Whose wedding?"

"Liu Mingyi, a female celebrity."

Gu Xu got up, put the phone on speaker, and walked into the bathroom: "Is the information reliable?"

"Absolutely reliable. Liu Mingyi is getting married tonight, and Lu Yan is planning to make a scene. Damn, this guy, he’s really something! What a guy!" Chen Yiming clicked his tongue. "But as a public figure, if he really crashes the wedding and gets caught on camera, his reputation is ruined—homewrecker, ruining someone else’s marriage."

"Hey, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Lu Yan is signed under you now. If he really crashes that wedding and it gets exposed, his career is pretty much over."

Gu Xu was silent for a while, then suddenly asked: "The groom’s name is Zhou Ming?"

"How would I know?"

"Check."

"Why do you care what the groom's name is? After tonight, you can just call him 'Mr. Cuckold.'"

"Just check it."

"Alright, I’ll consider it even for the meal you treated me to yesterday. By the way, if this gets exposed and you decide to break the contract with Lu Yan, let me know. I’ll see if I can poach him."

They hung up without another word.